3 Jul 2017

Short term missions are not the race

by | posted in: Missions | 197,336

I am always amazed at the excitement and nervousness from those going on their first short-term mission trip, most of the time they don’t know enough to know what they need to be nervous about. There is an excitement in their eyes as they head into the unknown. They prepare testimonies and lessons, not knowing how God will use them or if they will be effective. They pack what is recommended and wonder if it will be enough. They comfort their parents and loved ones, and try to reassure them everything is going to be alright, while at the same time not knowing what the future holds. But through leading and prayer, the journey begins.

 

A lot of mission team members, especially those who have never been on mission before usually become broken spiritually sometime during the week of the trip. They discover a new outlook on sharing, faith, trust, and God. Why is this? It is simple, during the week they are constantly hearing the word of God either from others sharing or through the preaching or their own study. They also see the word of God come to life. That doesn’t mean that the bible gets up and starts walking around. But they see the Spirit of God begin to work in the lives of the people they come in contact with. They walk the streets with a single purpose, to find the person of peace with whom they can share the good news of the gospel. Some are hit with the hard truth that not all will accept the gospel, so they plant a seed not knowing the condition of the soil. Other times they begin to pour out water onto unknown soil, unaware that a seed exist and has been waiting for the moisture that God will use to bring it to life. They get excited and don’t know what to do when out of the ground springs forth life. A miracle, they get to see cold dead bones come to life. After that experience, they have a drive to share and no longer need to be pushed in front of people to share with. Oh what it would have been like in Acts to walk the streets and see God work, bringing people to life through the proclamation of the Gospel. But wait, could that still happen? And could it happen here?

After returning home and a couple weeks of rest, life returns to normal. The mission was accomplished, people were saved and now we are back comfortable, safe, fed, and loved. Or are we? There is always a sense of completion at the end of a mission trip. Not that that would be wrong in the short term, but there is a since of that was where we were on mission at, but now we are back and we have things to get done. Real stuff, school, work, friends, problems, and you know life. Right?

One of the greatest tragedies we have is short-term missions. I know you saw a bunch of people get saved, and God really “showed up”, but stay with me. There is a since of awe and wonder during the week of a mission trip. And we look forward to the next year when we can go and feel that same since of awe and wonder. But let’s compare it to a race shall we. Anyone who runs foot races understands that you have different splits. These are markers throughout the race to gauge your progress, and to ensure you are on pace. A short-term mission trip is sort of like a split. It is a time to see if you are where you need to be in your spiritual life, in your reading and study of the word, apologetics, doctrines, and if you can articulate them to the world around you. The shortness of the week gives you the opportunity to push yourself hard and to evaluate yourself. The tragedy is that the short-term is looked at, as the race itself. We return with a sense that we ran and will rest up to run again next year.

The race however is not over. In fact it is just beginning. When you return home, it is like passing the first mile marker. The street is no longer filled with cheering fans, the road narrows, and the reality of the race sets in. Here is where we must work our hardest. This is where we must pull from prayer and scripture, the strength to press on. Where most might sit and rest, we must run to win. We don’t just return to normal life, we return with a renewed sense of awe for what God has been doing and we must now trust even more so that He will continue His work. We saw on foreign soil God work in others lives. Now we must trust that He will work in ours for His glory and to reach those around us. We are home; this is where we must turn from our sins, where we must love God more than mother and father, more than friends and things. This is where we live out what we preach, if we believe that which we have taught. Did we believe it? Do we believe it? If so, then are we disciplined for the miles ahead? Paul tells the church at Corinth “I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified”. Are we disqualified or are we still in the race?

There are no short-term missionaries; there are only missionaries in different context. When we return to our Jerusalem, let us seek the hope that is only found in Christ. Let us not lean on our own understanding, our own wisdom, which is foolishness. Let us not fall victim to busyness and the lure of shiny objects that promise fulfillment. Let our knees be worn out for those nearest to us. Let our time be determined by the cross and His call, trusting that He will provide the time for work, family, fun, and ministry, as we continue the race. We have found our greatest joy in walking by faith; let us not check our faith with Homeland Security as we return home. But let us be reminded daily where our ultimate security is found and where our joy is greatest. Wherever you woke up at, wherever you find yourself, wherever you stand today, then that is your mission field. Time to get running.

197336 Responses

  2. máy hút bụi công nghiệp
    | Reply

    Excellent post. Keep writing such kind of information on your page.
    Im really impressed by your blog.
    Hey there, You’ve done an excellent job.
    I will definitely digg it and for my part recommend to my friends.
    I am confident they will be benefited from this site.

  7. PHISING
    | Reply

    Saya sudah beberapa kali melihat situs seperti
    ini muncul dan menghilang dalam waktu singkat. Biasanya setelah mereka mendapatkan cukup banyak korban, mereka akan tutup
    dan membuka situs baru dengan nama berbeda. Jangan sampai kalian masuk ke perangkap yang
    sama!

  13. Lora Gray
    | Reply

    Tips from experienced players regarding tempering expectations can improve overall enjoyment—they’re well articulated over at #Anykeyword okbet

  19. zbrazilia01
    | Reply

    I’ll immediately grasp your rss feed as I can not find your e-mail subscription hyperlink or e-newsletter service.
    Do you have any? Kindly allow me know in order that I could subscribe.
    Thanks.

    Visit my blog post zbrazilia01

  23. VVBNHHGYT
    | Reply

    Generally I don’t learn post on blogs, but I
    wish to say that this write-up very forced me to try and do so!

    Your writing taste has been surprised me. Thank you, quite
    great article.

  24. 公司 裝修
    | Reply

    Definitely believe that which you said. Your favorite
    reason appeared to be on the internet the simplest thing
    to be aware of. I say to you, I certainly get irked while people think
    about worries that they plainly don’t know about. You managed to hit
    the nail upon the top and also defined out the whole thing without having side effect ,
    people could take a signal. Will probably be back to get
    more. Thanks

  29. website
    | Reply

    5.231 viѕualizações 19 ԁe fev. de 2025 #turmerichаck
    #weiɡhtloss #turmericforweightloss
    Turmeric Hack Rеcipe For Weight Loss (TIKTOK’S VIRAL RECIPE) Seｅ My Results With
    the Turmeric Hack

    FULL TUᏒMΕRIC HACK RECІPE BELOW

    I couldn’t believe it at first… but thіs turmeric trick helpeɗ me lose over 20 pounds in just a few weekѕ!

    Unliкe crazʏ diets or exhausting wߋrkoutѕ,
    this simple turmeric ritual melts stubboгn fat automatically—24/7.

    It worкs by reduⅽing inflammation in fat cells, which scientists say іs the real cause of weight gain.

    The best part? It’s 100% natural, easy to do, and way safеr than risky weight loss drugs.

    If you’ve been strugglіng to lose weight, yߋu need to try this turmeric
    hack tоnight!

    ✨ Want to see how it works?
    I’vｅ left tһe link in the first comment! Click now and
    follօw the step-by-step instructions.

    My ƅlog post: website

  41. koitoto
    | Reply

    With havin so much content do you ever run into any issues
    of plagorism or copyright infringement? My website has a lot of exclusive content I’ve
    either created myself or outsourced but it appears a lot of it is popping it up all over the internet without my permission. Do
    you know any solutions to help reduce content from being ripped off?

    I’d truly appreciate it.

  42. koi toto
    | Reply

    Hi there just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in your post seem to be running off the screen in Opera.
    I’m not sure if this is a formatting issue or something
    to do with web browser compatibility but I thought
    I’d post to let you know. The layout look great though!
    Hope you get the problem fixed soon. Thanks

  44. toto
    | Reply

    Thank you for the good writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it.
    Look advanced to more added agreeable from you!
    By the way, how could we communicate?

  49. apply for e-visa india from usa
    | Reply

    Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could
    add to my blog that automatically tweet my newest
    twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for
    quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like
    this. Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look
    forward to your new updates.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *